The adoption of the Americans with Disabilities Act has caused the transit industry to equip current bus designs with expensive and difficult to maintain wheelchair lifts. These lifts enable wheel chairs to have access to a bus, but require the vehicle driver to leave his seat and operate the lift, thereby slowing down bus service. The industry response to these initial efforts has been to design the bus so that a lift is not necessary. This is being accomplished by lowering the floor of the bus to the level of the street curb, whereby a wheel chair will be able to roll directly from the sidewalk onto the bus without the use of a mechanical lift. This lowering permits wheelchair access to the vehicle without the impediment of the traditional set of stairs.
The lowered floor bus, while easy to access, has the consequence of making the wheel wells protrude further into the interior of the bus. Consequently, the aisle space will be quite narrow between the wheel wells. When the aisle space is narrow, it cannot be used as effectively for holding passengers or cargo as other parts of the bus. However, two flip seats may be placed on each side of the aisle, with their backs proximate to opposing wheel wells and their fronts facing the aisle. Each flip seat has a back support portion and a flip seating portion that are hingedly associated with one another. The flip seating portion has a substantially horizontal position, where it is substantially perpendicular to the back support portion. Additionally the flip seating portion has a substantially vertical position, where it is proximate and substantially parallel with the back support portion. The flip seating portion may be limitedly rotated about the hingedly associated end, from its substantially horizontal position to the substantially vertical position. A wheelchair or other object may occupy the space formerly occupied by any one flip seating portion in the substantially horizontal position. While this provides more room, the flip seat will still occupy some space between the aisle and the wheel well. Therefore, simply rotating the seating portion of each flip seat will not provide enough space to position wheelchairs in these spaces without the wheelchairs also extending into part of the aisle. The solution is to make a swing away flip seat that is completely removable from the space between a wheel well and an aisle by being stored in the space above the wheel well.
One method of operation which would permit a swing away flip seat to be removed from the space between an aisle and a wheel well by being stored in the space above the wheel well, is pivoting it about an axis which runs substantially coextensive and parallel with the top of the back support portion and swinging it through an arc. Although this stores the stowable swing away flip seat out of the way it is very awkward, as the heavy part must be lifted a large distance above the floor. Additionally, this method causes the stowable swing away flip seat to swing further out into the aisle while it travels through the arc. Consequently, losing control of the stowable swing away flip seat while lifting could result in personal injury to an operator or a bystander. A second method of operation would entail pivoting the swing away flip seat about an axis that is substantially coextensive and parallel with the bottom of the back support portion of the stowable swing away flip seat. While this makes the load height lower it does not get the seat entirely out of the aisle area when stowed. Because the stowable swing away flip seat will extend into the aisle walkway, the use of the aisle by riders will be impeded.
The instant invention also relates to a method which permits a swing away flip seat to be removed from the space between an aisle and a wheel well by being rotated and stowed in the space above a wheel well or similar obstruction. The stowable swing away flip seat has a flip seating portion that can be limitedly rotated from a substantially horizontal position to a substantially vertical position. The stowable swing away flip seat can be transported from a deployed position to a stowed position above a wheel well or similar obstruction. Additionally, the stowable swing away flip seat is completely removable from the space between the wheel well and the aisle walkway. During the stowage operation the stowable swing away flip seat can be transported from a deployed position to a stowed position, all the while without extending further in the forward aisle walkway direction than while deployed with the flip seating portion in the substantially horizontal position. Additionally, during the stowage operation consistent weight distribution is maintained and the stowage operator is spared from performing awkward maneuvers. The instant invention will allow efficient and flexible utilization of the space adjacent to a wheel well or similar obstruction in low floor buses and will permit the transit industry to more effectively comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Accordingly, it is the object of the present invention to provide a stowable swing away flip seat for mounting to a support member, such as a wheel well, that can be deployed adjacent to the support member and then stowed above the support member. The stowable swing away flip seat is stowed to provide space for a wheelchair, or other article, in the space formerly occupied by the deployed seat. The invention comprises a seat and a linkage system.
The linkage system comprises multiple bars, which further comprise multiple arms, preferably made from steel, that associate the stowable swing away flip seat with a support member. The linkage system supports the stowable swing away flip seat while deployed and stowed. Additionally, when a lifting force is applied to the stowable swing away flip seat, the linkage system, upon the exertion of a lifting force, generates a path that transports the stowable swing away flip seat from a deployed position to a stowed position above a support member. The arms may of the linkage system may be tailored so that the generated path confines the route traveled by the stowable swing away flip seat during the stowage operation so that it does not protrude further in the forward horizontal plane, relative to the support member, then it does while in its original deployed position. The preferred embodiment utilizes a four bar linkage system having two upper bars and two lower bars.
In some embodiments, the linkage system includes a biasing means to ensure a consistent distribution of weight during the stowage operation. The biasing means also allows the stowage operation to occur without invoking awkward movements from the stowage operator. Furthermore, the biasing means may comprise one or more pressurized cylinders.
The stowable swing away flip seat comprises of a seating portion, a back support portion, and a means for hingedly associating the two. The seating portion and back support portion are both preferably made from steel. The seating portion and back support portion collectively provide seating for an occupant while in the deployed position. The preferred embodiment has a means for hingedly associating the seating portion with the back support portion, however it is conceivable that the two could be fixedly attached. In the preferred embodiment, a seat plate portion, preferably made from steel, acts as a means for hingedly associating the seating portion with the back support portion. The seat plate portion may comprise a series of individual plates collectively fixedly to form the seat plate portion or a solid one-piece seat plate portion. The means of fixedly attaching the individual plates may comprise welding, or using nuts and bolts, or the like. In some embodiments, the seating portion is limited to rotating from a substantially horizontal position to a substantially vertical position, relative to the back support portion in a substantially vertical position.
The preferred embodiment utilizes the linkage system and support legs as a means of supporting the stowable swing away flip seat while deployed. The support legs act to channel the downward force of the stowable swing away flip seat to a support structure, such as a floor. The support legs extend from the stowable swing away flip seat to a floor, and thereby transfer the downward force of the stowable swing away flip seat to the floor. In the preferred embodiment the support legs are hingedly associated, however, conceivably they may be fixedly associated.
In addition to the linkage system the preferred embodiment utilizes a deflector plate, preferably made from steel, to limit the rotation of the stowable swing away flip seat upon the completion of the stowage operation. In such an embodiment, the deflecting plate is associated with the seat and limits rotation upon contacting a fixed structure, such as a wall.
For security, the preferred embodiment utilizes a positive locking means to lock the stowable swing away flip seat in a stowed position.